James Barnes
James "Bucky" Barnes was a Field Agent for S.H.I.E.L.D., and a former soldier in the Vietnam War. Early Life James Buchanan Barnes was born on August 19, 1952 in New York City, New York to George and Winifred C. Barnes. The eldest of three children, James was close to his father at a young age, sharing his love for the military. During the Vietnam War, he set up a profitable endeavor providing soldiers with various non-requisition supplies. At age 16, James enlisted in the U.S. Military, lying about his age in order to be accepted. He soon was shipped out to the military base to receive his hand-to-hand combat training. There, he met and befriended a young and somewhat naive private Steve Rogers, who had recently become the government operative Captain America. He was assigned to accompany Rogers, but was initially unaware of the true nature of his work. For several months afterward, Barnes underwent an intensive training program under Captain America's tutelage. When he finished his training, the two were placed in the Howling Commando's, led by Nick Fury. Although he was able to work with his mentor for most of his missions, he was cynical and slightly dubious of the idealistic Steve Rogers, but they soon became the closest of friends. Bucky served Captain America and the Howling Commando's capably and faithfully, a group that would remain together until the end of the war. In 1968, toward the end of the TET Offensive, Captain America and Bucky discovered HYDRA scientist Baron Heinrich Zemo in the process of stealing an experimental drone plane built by the Americans. Quickly, Captain America and Bucky each grabbed a motorcycle and tried to catch up with it. Just before it flew out of reach, the two leaped for the plane. Bucky leaped first and missed, but Captain America managed to get a grip on the plane's wing. He attempted to defuse the bomb, but the plane ultimately exploded, seemingly killing Captain America instantly. However, he was able to jump off at the last second and was plunged into the waters to undergo the process of suspended animation. His remains were never recovered, strengthening the belief that he was killed in action. After Captain America's supposed death, Bucky continued to serve with the Howling Commando's for most of the rest of the war. S.H.I.E.L.D. Surviving the war and believing Rogers had died during his last mission, Bucky eventually married Rogers' fiancé, Peggy and had two children, Marvin and Rebecca. Powers and Abilities Powers The Infinity Formula has metabolized and enhanced all of his bodily functions to the peak of human efficiency: Artificially Enhanced Physiology: Bucky has no superhuman powers, although as a result of the Infinity Formula, his strength, durability, speed and agility were enhanced and his aging was greatly slowed down. *'Enhanced Strength': Bucky's strength was enhanced to almost superhuman levels due to the Infinity Formula. *'Enhanced Durability': Bucky's durability was enhanced due to the Infinity Formula and is superior to those of ordinary humans. *'Superhuman Healing': He is able to heal broken bones, torn muscles, several gunshots, knife stabs and other severe injuries within 3 to 4 days and most lesser injuries like cuts, scrapes and burns within hours. *'Retarded Aging': The Infinity Formula extended Bucky's lifespan by slowing the effects of the aging process. Bucky is in his mid 50's, but because of the Infinity Formula, he only appears to be in his mid to late 30's. *'Enhanced Speed': Bucky can run at speeds of up to approximately 20 miles per hour, and had on occasion run a mile in little over a minute (almost 40 mph) when under duress. *'Enhanced Agility': Bucky's agility was superior to that of typical Olympic athletes. Abilities Master Martial Artist: Barnes is a dangerously skilled martial artist and hand-to-hand combatant. He received training from Captain America (Steve Rogers) in multiple martial arts, and acrobatics as a teenager during the Vietnam War and was trained in more of them while being molded into an assassin against the Soviet Union. He has single-handedly beaten a squad of SHIELD agents, Wolverine and Black Widow, defeated a regiment of Hydra agents alongside the Avengers, in combat and fought Captain America (Steve Rogers) and Iron Man to a standstill. Expert Marksman: He is an extremely accurate marksman. Skilled in sharpshooting and knife throwing. Skilled Shield Fighter: Barnes is becoming rapidly proficient with his former partner's shield. He is able to throw it with near perfect aim striking multiple targets in a single throw and achieving a boomerang-like return after throwing it at single person or object. Peak Human Conditioning: Has shown Olympic to possible near peak human level strength, agility, endurance, dexterity, etc. Advanced Scout: Barnes is a very gifted scout and adept at stealth and concealment. Multi-lingual: He was fluent in English, Russian, German, Japanese, and a little French. He might be able to speak other languages. Expert Spy: He is an expert in the field of espionage thanks largely to his former Howling Commando teammate, Steve Rogers, and the United States military. He is skilled in stealth, demolitions, survival, deducing other persons ways of thinking and other fields. Expert Assassin: Barnes is an adept of his generation as Matthew Murdock, Elektra Natchios and Bullseye is of theirs. During an operation in the Vietnam War with the Howling Commando's, Barnes has from concealment thrown a 60 centimeters-long knife to penetrate the winter uniform outer garment of a Vietnamese soldier with such accuracy as to pierce his heart in high arctic winds several meters. Barnes has mastered and implemented several methods to silently eliminate sentries with bladed weapons, garrotes or his bare hands. He is a master at stealth and tracking and is very intelligent. He was able to render Wolverine's superhumanly acute senses such as smell completely useless by luring him to an abandoned warehouse that was completely soaked on the inside with oil and even soaking himself to make it so that Wolverine could not detect him. Barnes has made a habit out of constantly studying his surroundings and depicting what he can and cannot do in whatever situation he should fall in much like his friend, Captain America. Black Widow stated to Tony Stark that he is one of the most dangerous men she knew. Paraphernalia Equipment SHIELD uniform, made from 9-ply Kevlar (able to withstand ballistic impact up to .45 caliber bullets)and beta-cloth, a fire-resistant material whose kindling temperature is 1,700 °F (930 °C). Numerous S.H.I.E.L.D. paraphernalia including a radio-link tie, and a bulletproof suit. Transportation Various air, land, and sea craft provided by S.H.I.E.L.D.. Weapons A government issue .45 caliber semi-automatic Heckler & Koch HK45, a modified semi-automatic 610 mm M40 Sniper rifle, and a 5.56 mm M16 rifle. Also, an array of SHIELD weapons, conventional and otherwise. Personality and traits Relationships *''Relationships'': James Buchanan Barnes/Relationships *''Family'': James Buchanan Barnes/Family Notes Links *James Buchanan Barnes/Gallery *James Buchanan Barnes/Quotes Category:Males Category:Americans Category:Humans Category:SHIELD members